Iraq business setup summary

Press the link headings below to read detailed, relevant, up to date information.

Benefits of Iraq company registration

Our Clients can incorporate a limited liability company in Iraq with 1 director and 1 shareholder and minimum paid up share capital of US$860 (IQD1,000,000). Furthermore, both the director and the shareholder can be non-resident foreign nationals. Lastly, our Client will not be required to travel to Iraq to complete the registration process. Unfortunately, it takes 8 months to register an Iraq LLC;

All Iraqi companies will be completely exempt from paying i) value added tax (VAT) on goods & services ii) withholding tax on dividend payments and iii) withholding tax on royalty payments. Furthermore, dividends received by Iraqi companies from other resident companies will also be exempt from corporate tax;

Companies investing in the Iraqi free zones will receive additional benefits: i) 100% exemption from corporate tax, custom duties (for both exports and imports) and capital gains tax ii) no foreign exchange restrictions and iii) permission to buy/sell foreign currency within the zone without any restrictions;

Iraq has signed multiparty agreements with 9 countries in the Arab League and bilateral agreements with 32 countries including Japan, Germany, South Korea, UK and USA to i) reduce withholding tax on repatriated profits; ii) provide for fair treatment of investors and appropriate compensation in case of expropriation; and iii) settlement of business disputes in accordance with internationally established norms;

Iraq has signed free trade area (FTA) agreements with 11 countries including Egypt, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and UAE to reduce (or eliminate) trade barriers between the countries.

The National Investment Commission (NIC) of Iraq licenses projects with capital investments of at least US$250,000 which boost the Iraqi economy. All such projects will enjoy additional benefits including:

NIC licensed projects will be completely exempt from all taxes and fees for a period of 10 years from the date of commencement of operations. These benefits can be renewed after 10 years for another 15 years if the Iraqi participation in the project increases to 50%;

There will be no restrictions on capital account and current account transactions, if such transactions are supported by proper documentation. Hence, Iraqi resident companies will be allowed to i) transfer capital in and out of the country and ii) remit their annual profits to their home countries;

All assets imported into Iraq for the development of a certain project will be exempt from all custom duties provided they are imported within 3 years from the licensing date. Similarly, assets imported for further expansion of the project will also enjoy the same exemption if the imports are made within 3 years of notifying the NIC;

Companies engaging in projects involving hotels, hospitals, clinics, educational and research institutions will be allowed to import assets custom free once every 4 years for the sole purpose of modernising these establishments;

Resident companies with NIC licensed projects will be allowed to lease land in Iraq for up to 50 years. Also, companies which wish to engage in construction of residential property will be allowed to buy and sell land specifically for that purpose;

Unlike other projects, companies will not be required to give preference to local Iraqi employees when hiring new employees. Companies will be allowed to directly approach foreign workers without initially advertising for local qualified workers or requesting for permission from the authorities. Furthermore, new foreign employees will be allowed easy access to residence permit for working in Iraq;

Resident companies engaging in NIC licensed projects will be allowed to fully insure their investment though an Iraqi or non-Iraqi institution of their choice.

Iraq is predominantly an export-oriented economy with the combined value of its imports and exports contributing to 72% of its GDP. In 2016, Iraq had a positive trade balance of US$11.5 billion. The major export sectors of the economy are i) crude petroleum; ii) gold; iii) tropical fruits; and iv) recovered paper.

Problems of Iraq company registration

Our Clients’ investments in Iraq are not secure because:

The judicial system in Iraq is highly inefficient, with the World Bank negatively ranking the country as 122nd best in the world for enforcing contracts. Furthermore, the courts are likely to favour local entrepreneurs over foreign entrepreneurs in case of disputes. Consequently, our Clients will not be able to depend on the law for resolving business disputes;

There is recurrent political violence in Iraq due to i) Sunni Islamic group ISIS taking over 1/3rd of the country ii) lack of trust between the Shia-dominated Iraqi Government and the Sunni population including the Kurds and iii) flow of Sunni refugees from neighbouring Syria, another war torn country. This has led to massive upheavals in the country with civil strife, bomb blasts and brutal killings becoming the norm. This makes Iraq a very dangerous place to start a new business.

While the Iraqi Government is opening the economy to foreign investors, it will still be very cumbersome to do business in the country because:

The banking system is Iraq is seriously under-developed. Local private banks are extremely undercapitalized which discourages people from making deposits in these banks. Furthermore, the international private banks like Standard Chartered Iraq and T.C. Ziraat Bank are not-well established which limits basic services like issue of debit and credit cards; and presence of ATMs. Furthermore, internet banking facilities and customer care service will be poor for foreign entrepreneurs;

For all the reasons listed above, the World Bank negatively ranked Iraq as the 168st best country in the world in their annual Doing Business survey.

There is a severe shortage of qualified labour in Iraq because:

Iraq has lost more than two decades to wars and civil strife. As a result, there is a massive shortage of educated or qualified individuals amongst the current labour force. Our Clients will be affected by this shortage when they start operating in Iraq;

Iraqi companies outside the free zones must give preference to Iraqi citizens and nationals for employment before considering other individuals. Legally, at least 50% of the labour force in a company must be Iraqi citizens and nationals;

While English is the most commonly spoken Western language in Iraq, the level of conversational English skills remain poor, even among the educated elite. According to the US Department of Commerce, there is lack of training in conversational English at the school and university level which will make it harder for our Clients to work with local suppliers, employees and customers;

The education system in Iraq is severely affected by the devastating wars that have taken place over the years and led to dislocation of people and ruined all the necessary infrastructure. By 2005, almost 84% of the higher education institutions were either burnt, looted or destroyed. The nation has come a long way and recovered from the same, however, a major proportion of the population still does not have access to basic education.

Key facts

To help us engineer the optimum Iraq corporate structure, please complete the 3-minute questionnaire below; then press the submit button below.

This data remains confidential and is not sold to third-parties.

Within 5 hours, one of our senior staff will ring or email you:

Company purpose?

Will the LLC be a trading company or a holding company?Will the entity be a subsidiary of a foreign company?The LLC will be tax resident? Having local customers and local staff and local suppliers?The entity will receive investment income or professional services fees or sales from trading with multi-national customers?Is double taxation treaty access important?Do you need our help to legally minimize your international tax obligations?Do you need our help to increase e-commerce sales (click link)?

Company structure?

Will the shareholders be individuals or corporate?In what country do you require a corporate bank account? Refer to this web page (click link) for ideasDo you need multi-currency corporate visa debit cards?Do you need a resident director?Nationality of shareholders and directors?Expected annual sales and net profits?Does the entity need a special regulatory license or import or export license?Additional comments?

Tell us about your existing business?

Name of your existing company?Your business web site address?What products and services does your company supply?How many years are you operating this business?Is your Firm regulated by a Government agency?In what country are the majority of your customers?In what country are the majority of your suppliers?

Tell us about you?

Your name?Your email address?What country are you based in?Specifically, what deliverables (click link) do you need?What is your US$ budget for the services you need?What does quality customer service mean to you?

How do we contact you?

For now, do you prefer Healy Consultants PLC staff to phone you, or just email reply you with some corporate solutions?If a phone call, on what number can our senior Consultant call you?If an email, what email address can our Consultant email you at?What is your preferred date and time for a phone call?In what language do you prefer we communicate with you?What matters would you like to discuss during the call; the agenda?

Thank you for taking the time to complete this important questionnaire. It will help us to timely complete your engagement with minimum inconvenience to you.

Please leave this field empty.

Read the Privacy Policy (click link)I acknowledge that I have read and understood the Privacy Policy, and consent to the collection, use and disclosure of my personal data by Healy Consultants Group PLC and/or Healy Consultants Pte. Ltd. for the purposes set out in the Notice.I want to receive helpful business information such as insights, success tips and how-to guidesNote: By clicking the above, you acknowledge that your information will be processed by MailChimp, our marketing platform. You can unsubscribe at any time through the footer link in our emails.

In the unfortunate case that the questionnaire cannot be submitted, please click on the "Export" button to download the PDF export with your form entries. You can submit this PDF document together with your request to us by email to email@healyconsultants.com. By exporting the form and ensuring the required fields are completed, you agree to the Privacy Policy and consent to the collection of your personal data above.

Contact us

Testimonial

“Pirster Pte is happy with the work that Healy Consultants undertook for the company. International incorporation can be fraught with opacity, anxiety and vulnerability - especially if it is being done remotely as we did. Healy Consultants worked really hard to make it transparent, straight forward and confidence-inspiring. I look forward to working with Healey Consultants again on future work and happily recommend them to others.”

Fiona Thompson, Managing Director Pirster Pte.

“We had taken Healy Consultants assistance in incorporating our entities in some of the complicated jurisdictions. Their approach right from the beginning has been very systematic, clear and efficient. It has been a pleasure to work with all of them.”

“Thank you Healy Consultants for swiftly project managing my engagement. From the moment I met you in Singapore Healy Consultants attended to my requirements and specific needs. I am more than satisfied with your service. Moreover, your weekly updates allowed me to continue to focus my attention on my global business while trusting you to deliver as promised.”

“Thank you Healy Consultants, you were instrumental in setting up of my Hong Kong based company, the whole process was completed in a professional and timely manner.”

Terry Skews, CEO Brittany Offshore Limited

“Healy Consultants, a professionally managed firm with clear understanding and knowledge about what client expects from them and delivers the same in a professional and timely manner. Kudos to their team.”

“Incorporating any company is comparable to setting the foundation blocks of your new company building, which you aim to build in the best location available. By choosing Healy Consultants you are laying the perfect foundations.”

“The one word that defines Healy Consultants is perfect professionalism. If you have Healy to set up your business abroad, you could focus on the operational overhead and let Healy take care of the rest. From Incorporation to Taxation, it’s a one stop solution. Rest assured, you will have the best people in the Industry working for you and providing you with the best possible information and suggestions.”

Raja Chakraborty, Director Streamlyn Pte. Ltd.

“Thank you Healy Consultants for successfully project managing our business set up in Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar and Bahrain.”

“When it was time to establish a Space Academy in Singapore, TriVector needed a knowledgeable firm that could not only help us establish our infrastructure, but could also advise on the local and regional business climate. Healy was that firm, which is why we've been satisfied Healy Consultants for almost five years now.”

Timothy F Kauffman, CEO Trivector Services

“Finding the right partner was critical for VESL’s expansion in Asia and working with Healy Consultants has made this possible.”

“Healy Consultants were instrumental in the set up of our company. They have continued to provide exceptional support and advice over the years.”

Susan Gunnery, Managing Director Qudoss Group

“Healy Consultants is the best firm that we have ever worked with. Through our entire business relationship we were satisfied with provided level of quality and services. Healy Consultants have been responsive and detail oriented which has allowed us to stay focused on our business and not getting distracted with small details.”